How To Use LinkedIn To Gain Leverage In Your B2B Data Provision Campaign

If you are still not convinced by how LinkedIn can help you gain qualified leads then consider a 2012 study conducted by HubSpot. When looking at traffic reported by 5,000 businesses, those generated from LinkedIn had the highest volume of visitor-to-lead conversion rates at 2.74%. This rate is triple that of Twitter and Facebook combined!

If you are now convinced that LinkedIn is a great social media platform for your B2B data provision campaign, then here are six ways of maximizing your leverage using this social media platform:

1.      Jazz up your links: Consider including 3 links to other websites on your profile page. According to Lorrie Ross, a marketing consultant, these links are a great way to persuade people to go to your blog, website, Facebook business page and Google+ page. These links can be placed in the standard dropdowns such as “company website” or “blog”. If you select “other” you can get creative and add a colourful description which can potentially tempt new visitors to your page which is great for B2B data provision.

2.      Get Social: Use your LinkedIn profile to sync with your Twitter page or any other social marketing tool. By creating an automatic link from your LinkedIn profile to your blog, you can share thought leadership with potential customers. It will help you build credibility, sellability and usability. Leads for B2B data provision are developed by playing nice and sharing titbits of information.

3.      Monitor your visitors: Purchase a premium membership on LinkedIn to track who might be viewing your profile. Some of your visitors may be prospective clients who you may want to pursue for an effective B2B data provision campaign.

4.      Start a community: On LinkedIn, you can start your own community based on your area of expertise or industry. For example, Kristina Jaramillo is a marketing expert on LinkedIn who founded GetLinkedInHelp.com based on her videos and blog content.

5.      Increase your credibility level: To make connections with other communities, you can provide your input to other groups. One way to do this is by leveraging material you are in the process of creating. Good examples of this include press releases, or a spotlight on media attention you have received from magazines and trusted websites. For example, if your article gets published somewhere, you can create conversations in particular LinkedIn communities, which will drive those group members to your content for B2B data provision campaign. Not only does this get you exposure, it also strengthens your credibility. It also positions your company as a thought leader and prospects will want to connect with you.

6.      Direct Sale: Social networking is about sharing knowledge and expertise, but you may also want to purchase a LinkedIn direct advertisement. This ad will only be visible to your target audience. You can make a selection according to industry, company, job title or function, age, seniority, and company size and even membership in other LinkedIn groups.

The takeaway message is to sync your social media account with your LinkedIn profile, for effective B2B data provision as it increases your credibility by giving your input to other groups.